Getting Started - Web Design
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- nocomply0
As for the comments on Dreamweaver vs other text editors... I still use DW as my primary code editing application, but like ukit2 I use code view and close all of the extra features/widgets.
I've been using it for years and it's simply proven to be the most efficient tool for me. I've tried others for a day or two but have always come back.The auto-complete is a key feature that I can't live without and other apps haven't done it as well.
- To me this sounds counter intuitive, unless you see things like the Matrix.qTime
- nocomply0
The world of responsive design is changing a lot right now, but most people agree that this book is great: http://www.abookapart.com/produc…
In fact, I believe that's where the term "responsive web design" came from.
The stuff that's written in there is still really good info, but keep in mind that it's already almost 2 years old.
- omg0
I think in web design, if you first jump into a good idea.
- fadein110
^ as above. only use code editor and site management features. and have tried other code editors but always come back to it. works for me.
- newuser0
What should one learn if they already know basic html/css?
- LukeO0
I'm thinking of using Treehouse over Lynda.... they give the impression of being more focused on web design/dev, possibly more intuitive as well. Can anyone vouch for that?
- eoin0
So ... am I wasting my time learning Dreamweaver? Does anyone use it?
- clearThoughts0
Probably not with Ruby if you don't know basic HTML or CSS.
- Maaku0
I'm on the same path. Been using Lynda.com as a start and last week I order this book which seems to be quite good (at least for the basics)
- ordered*Maaku
- my friend wrote this book Yay!clearThoughts
- @– clearThoughts, Tell your friend i just love his book!! Nicely done!!Mishga
- kona0
It's worth every penny. If you want to be a web designer I'd argue you don't need to know everything about HTML and CSS. It absolutely helps that you do, but you don't have to be a master. Ruby I'd say no to.
- fadein110
Design a site in your spare time with features you want to use.
Every evening come home from work and spend time on it.
Use Google whenever you get stuck or ask on here.
Repeat until you feel confident.- Thats what I've been doing and so far it works for me. I even design some Facebook apps for a watch companyhektor911
- CincodeMayo0
@Maaku I think we're signing up for Lynda at work so that should help. I actually bought HTML & CSS a while back. Great looking book and definitely a good start. Gotta read it again and make sure it sinks in.
Also in the middle of the TutsPlus 30 Days to HTML & CSS and really liking it so far. http://learncss.tutsplus.com/
- Make sure you are able to download the exercise files. It helps to copy/paste code for snipets and stuffMaaku
- Thanks Maaku. I'm sure that'll help.CincodeMayo
- CincodeMayo0
So no to Ruby off the bat, but after I have a solid grasp on HTML/CSS, is Ruby the next step? Or is something else better? Or nothing...is HTML/CSS good enough?
- ruby is completely different.... that's okay, just very different... not a "linear order stepping stone" thing...vaxorcist
- ukit20
I've always been a fan of just diving in and start working on a project. Personally I get bored reading through books or watching three hour tutorials. And there is so much ground to cover with this stuff that if you really sat down and tried to learn all of it, it would take months.
The great thing about web design is that any question that will ever come up has already been answered somewhere in a forum like Stack Overflow. So my approach is to go over the basics, then just get started and look up anything I need as I go.
- animatedgif0
Ruby is more for applications and requires a dedicated server (real or virtual) to host anything on. You would most likely be using a PHP based CMS. Depending on the sort of work you want to do you might not need to know much server side at all, just templating languages if you use a system like wordpress.
Dreamweaver is weak and antiquated, stay away from that and learn a proper text editor like Sublime Text, Textmate, Espresso or Coda.
- vaxorcist0
I haven't used Dreamweaver in years, but I think it's kind of like training wheels on a bike... once you learn HTML, you may not need to go back...
that said, DW can come in handy as a cut-paste-fix-the-MS-Word-HTML trick every so often...
...but learning more than a but of DW can be counterproductive, as you're memorizing menu stuff rather than learning actual HTML / CSS principles...
- vaxorcist0
One nice thing about text editors rather than other methods... once you learn one text editor, if you're forced to use another one, the learning curve is 15 minutes....you may miss a feature or two, but you can be productive anywhere by FTP'ing down the files and fixing stuff at a friends house or the client location..., you don't have to go back to your own computer/...
- vaxorcist0
Dreamweaver has a template system, but it ties you to Dreamweaver and was in my previous experience years ago, easily corrupted if moved around the file system....
BUT.. .you don't have to know much PHP in order to make your own simple template system...
for example, the include function:
<? include("head.php"); ?>
<p>body copy here</p>
<? include("foot.php"); ?>and the echo function
$title = "hello there";
echo $title;- Dreamweaver template is a disaster.
Try to maintain a site with that crapi_was
- Dreamweaver template is a disaster.